Announcement - New BFE Committee Members and new BFE Administrator

Following the recent call for nominations to the BFE Committee, Fiorella Montero-Diaz (Keele University) and Simon McKerrell (Newcastle University) were nominated for election. Two vacancies on the Committee became available due to Amanda Villepastour and Noel Lobley stepping down, so the Committee is delighted to announce that both Fiorella and Simon are deemed to have been elected to the committee for 3-year terms.

Both Fiorella and Simon have agreed to take on new roles on the Committee. Fiorella will be the Development and Strategy Officer, helping the BFE to grow by designing strategies to boost membership and by promoting dialogue and events, which bring together the diverse BFE membership. Simon will be the External Relations Officer, with responsibility for collaborating with other institutions, and for promoting ethnomusicology and the BFE across the British Isles and Ireland.

In addition, Jonathan Stock, the Ethnomusicology Forum Representative has also stepped down from the Committee. The new EF Representative on the Committee is the incoming co-editor of Ethnomusicology Forum, Shzr Ee Tan (Royal Holloway).

A warm welcome to the new members of the Committee, Fiorella, Simon and Shzr Ee, and sincere thanks to the outgoing committee members, Amanda, Jonathan and Noel. Amanda worked tirelessly for the BFE before, during and after her tenure as Chair; Jonathan has made an important contribution to the Committee while also being co-editor of Ethnomusicology Forum; and Noel has done a great deal for the Committee over many years, especially in relation to BFE conferences and study days. Thanks again to you all for your service to the BFE.

Finally, I’m extremely pleased to announce that Morgan Davies has been appointed as the new BFE Administrator. As well as working for the BFE, Morgan is a sāraṅgī performer and recently submitted his PhD thesis on Western Rajasthani folk music. Morgan replaces Fiorella, who did an incredible job. During her tenure as the Administrator for nearly 3 years, Fiorella was the driving force behind many significant developments for the BFE. So, many thanks to Fiorella and welcome to the BFE team Morgan.